


Victims of circumstance

by Isaktlie



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, X-Men (Movies), X-Men (Movieverse)
Genre: (sort of), Alternate Universe - Criminals, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Con Artist - Charles, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Forced Relationship, M/M, No non-con though, Thief - Erik
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-26
Updated: 2016-03-26
Packaged: 2018-05-29 07:19:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6364636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Isaktlie/pseuds/Isaktlie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Erik woke up in an unknown room, he was quick to make a plan. Then he discovered someone had taken his son, seemingly for the sole purpose of having him pretend to be a mechanical engineer that's dating a good looking professor. Whatever was going on, he had to find a way out quickly before something could happen to Pietro or himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Victims of circumstance

When Erik woke up, it was in a bed inside a dimly lit windowless bedroom, his head pounding and his ribs aching. Someone had attacked him, it was the only reason he could think of; someone had attacked and abducted him. To his surprise, he wasn’t bound, but there were probably people standing guard outside the door. He sat up to look around trying to find a battle plan.

_Step one: Be aware of your surroundings. Step two: Find out who’s holding you. Step three: Find out what they know. Step four: Get out._

The bedroom was in calm shades of grey and blue with oak doors at three of the four walls in the room, and a comfortable king size bed in the same kind of wood. He swung his feet onto the soft carpet and tried to stand up, swaying a bit at first. The world was spinning, but after a few moments, he had gotten his balance. He walked over to the door on his left, hesitating for a moment before grabbing the doorknob and ripping it open. It was a walk-in closet filled with men’s wear; clearly someone lived there, probably a bachelor.

He passed the second door, the one on the opposite wall of the bed. It was most likely the door leading to the rest of wherever he was. For some reason he felt like he should explore this room first. He went over to the door on the right side of the bed and opened it, this time without any hesitation. A bathroom; he’d been right. It was just an ordinary bathroom, although large and expensively decorated.

Whoever lived there certainly had money, he thought as he walked to the only door left: The door that would lead him into the unknown. He was just about to open it when he heard someone talk to him through what had to be an earpiece he hadn’t even noticed.

“Mr. Lehnsherr I’m sure you’re wondering where you are and why you are there,” an unfamiliar male voice said in a tone of voice Erik could only describe as the most mundane and boring one possible, “but that’s not important. All you have to worry about is your son, and whether or not you’ll see him again,” the voice continued, making Erik freeze in rage and worry.

“If you harm my kid in any way, I will find you and rip you to shreds” He growled back, unsure if the disembodied voice even had a way of hearing him.  
“I will not harm little Pietro as long as you do what you’re told.” The voice said, pausing for a few seconds as Erik heard a faint click through the earpiece. “Now, let’s get down to business, gentlemen.” Gentlemen? Plural, who else was he talking to? “Mr. Lehnsherr, if you would be kind and walk out of the bedroom, we could get started”

Cautiously, Erik did as he’d been told, opening the door and stepping out into a large open room. It seemed to be some sort of open plan kitchen/dining room with a half floor step down to a living room. What caught his eye, however, was the man sitting at the dining table with his head in his hands. He was young, with brown hair, and clad in jeans and a slim light blue button down, enhancing the slender look of the man.

“Charles Xavier; meet Erik Lehnsherr. Erik Lehnsherr, Charles Xavier” The voice introduced as they studied each other with caution. “Now if you could go down to the living room and sit down, I’m sure you would both like some explanations” the voice continued as they both did as they were told. Moving down the few steps, measuring each other through the corner of their eyes to ensure they wouldn’t get ambushed by the other. The other man, Charles, sat down in a chair closest to the wall as Erik sat down in the sofa, furthest away from him. It was clear neither of them trusted each other, but Erik was far too busy going through the possibilities of what had happened to notice the frightened look in Charles’s eyes. The same look Erik was trying to hide. In any other situation, he would have seen it, but the thought of Pietro getting hurt was clouding his normally observant gaze.

Surprisingly Charles was the first to speak. “Who are you? What do you even want with us?” He asked in a voice that only wavered slightly.  
The exclamation, however, only gained him a small chuckle in return at first.

“Charles, you are a quite important person to me right now.” The man answered ambiguously after a few seconds. “Now, I could tell you, of course. But where’s the fun in that? This is a game, and you’ll both do best to play by the rules. If only this once”

“So you know who we are, but we’re not allowed to know who you are or the endgame. Is that it?” Erik asked, feeling anger raise in his chest. Who did this guy think he was? Did he really think he could just take his son without any repercussions?

“Yes, that’s exactly what it is.” The person stated, seeming eager to move on with whatever he was doing. “As you will see,” he continued just as the television turned itself on, “your families are both under control.”

Erik’s heart sank as he saw Pietro on one half of the screen, sitting in an unfamiliar room with a colouring pad. From the looks of it, he wasn’t in any immediate danger, but Erik had to use all his power of will not to lash out. The silence in the room had become pressing, as the two men watched the two parts of the screen. One was with the small child, the other with a room where four people seemed to be sitting around a table while eating. Charles’s family, he assumed as he saw them and the other man’s reaction.

“As you can see, I have not done any harm to your families. Nor do I want to, but that is not to say I won’t if you make me. Mister Xavier; at the moment, your family is completely unaware of the monitoring. I’m sure you remember the new neighbours that moved in a few months back. They have gotten quite friendly with the family, and will do as I tell them. Pietro is currently spending some time with a nice family who happen to work for me. They’re lovely people really, but have no quarrels with harming a child. All this is to say, I’m sure you understand that I mean business. You have been equipped with a nifty implant that allows me to talk to you directly, and as a bonus it has the ability to electrocute you. The battery has a lifetime of three years, if not used to electrocute, and if it does get used it will empty itself, delivering a deadly amount of electricity into your inner ear. Which is not to say it wouldn’t be fatal if you force me to use it in a year or two.” The disembodied voice threatened as Erik forced himself to calm down. It wouldn’t help Pietro if he overreacted or got himself killed, even if it was just an empty threat from whomever it was who had taken him.

“What do you want?” Erik wondered aloud, tearing his eyes off the screen to look around the room for any signs of an advantage. “I can’t play the game and follow your rules if I don’t know what game we’re playing.”

“Patience is a virtue, Erik. For now, you’re going to live with Charles. You’ve both been given a cover identity, Professor of biogenetics Charles Eisenhardt, and mechanical engineer Erik Eisenhardt.” The voice declared, making the blood in Erik’s veins run cold.

“Why the same surname? We don’t look similar enough for people to assume we’re related,” the other man- Charles- asked, effectively interrupting Erik’s train of thought.

“Because Mister and Mister Eisenhardt are married. Congratulations, you have now been together the last four years, and got married half a year ago.” The voice declared stoically. “For now, all you need to know, is that you are a loving, recently married couple that has just moved into town and will maintain that façade when in the presence of others. If you do that, and follow my orders, you and your loved ones will be safe.”

**Author's Note:**

> For those who don't know, Eisenhardt is Erik's mother's maiden name in the mcu, thus the reaction at the name.


End file.
